WILLIAM LOBB. 259 



earliest discoveries being Pleroma elegans.* He afterwards went to 

 Buenos Ayres, and then proceeded to Chili by crossing the great 

 Pampas of -the Argentine Kepublic and the Chilian Andes. After a 

 brief stay at Mendoza, Santiago, and Concepcion, he reached Valparaiso. 

 He then went southwards and penetrated the great Araucaria forests, 

 where he collected a large quantity of seeds of Araucaria imbricata. 

 At that time this tree was so scarce in England that young plants could 

 not be obtained in nurseries. Hundreds of plants were raised from 

 the seeds sent home by Lobb, who was thus instrumental in bringing 

 this remarkable Conifer into general use for ornamental planting. 

 Afterwards he proceeded northwards to Peru and Eucador, where he 

 remained for nearly two years, exploring the country and collecting 

 plants. He returned to England in 1844, renewed his engagement 

 with Mr. Veitch, and sailed again for Brazil in April of the following 

 year. After sending home from Bio Janeiro, a consignment of plants 

 which he had collected in southern Brazil, he once more proceeded to 

 Valparaiso, for the purpose of exploring southern Chili, at that time 

 but little known to Europeans, except along the coast. Here a rich 

 harvest awaited him. Among his earliest successful introductions from 

 this region were Lapageria rosea,\ Esmllonia macrantha,\ Erribothrium 

 coccineum,$ Philesia lmxifolia,\\ Desfontainea spinosa,^\ and many other 

 beautiful plants still foremost among garden favourites. Following up 

 these .brilliant achievements, he continued his explorations in Valdivia, 

 Chiloe, and northern Patagonia, where he collected seeds and plants of 

 Libocedrus tetragona, Fitzroya patagonica, Saxe-Gothcea conspicua, and 

 Podocarpus nubigenus, " four most interesting Conifers for this country, 

 after Araucaria imbricata, that South America produces."** Nor must 

 we omit mention of Berberis Darwinii,\\ which was first introduced to 

 British gardens by him during the same expedition. 



Lobb returned to England in 1848, not to rest upon his laurels, for 

 his love of travel was as strong as ever, and the firm friendship that 

 subsisted between him and Mr. Veitch remained unchanged. He, there- 

 fore, determined to continue his exploring expeditions. The wonderful 

 Conifers, discovered by Douglas in California and Oregon, were then 

 still very scarce in England, and young plants of most of the 

 important species could scarcely be bought with money. %% Hartweg 

 had succeeded in sending consignments of cones and seeds to the 

 Horticultural Society of London, three years previous, but the plants 

 raised from them were distributed among the fellows only. It was, 

 therefore decided that. Lobb should proceed to California with a view 

 of obtaining seeds of all the most important kinds known, and to 

 discover others, if possible. He landed at San Francisco in the 



* Bot. Mag., Tab. 4262. t Idem, 4473. X Idem, 4447. § Idem, 4856. 



|| Idem, 4738. If Idem, 4781. ** Idem, 4616. tt Idem, 4590. 



XX Loudon, Arb. et Frut,, pp. 2249, 2251, 2266, 2344. 



